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167
The Status Civilization
·
Robert Sheckley
77
"But
some
of
you
are
true
mutants?"
"Certainly.
But
even
then,
there
are
different
types
of
mutantism.
Some
just
show
radiation
abnormalities--giantism,
microcephaly,
and
the
like.
Only
a
few
of
us
possess
the
slightest
psi
abilities--although
all
mutants
claim
them."
"Are
you
able
to
skren?"
Barrent
asked
him.
"No.
But
Myla
can,"
he
said,
pointing
to
the
young
woman.
"Sometimes
she
can."
The
young
woman
was
staring
into
the
pan
of
water,
into
the
faceted
glass.
Her
pale
eyes
were
open
very
wide,
showing
almost
all
pupil,
and
her
fish-tailed
body
was
rigidly
upright,
supported
by
the
old
woman.
"She's
beginning
to
see
something,"
the
man
said.
"The
water
and
the
glass
are
just
devices
to
focus
her
attention.
Myla's
good
at
skrenning,
though
sometimes
she
gets
the
future
confused
with
the
past.
That
sort
of
thing
is
embarrassing,
and
it
gives
skrenning
a
bad
name.
It
can't
be
helped,
though.
Every
once
in
a
while
the
future
is
there
in
the
water,
and
Myla
has
to
tell
what
she
sees.
Last
week
she
told
a
Hadji
he
was
going
to
die
in
four
days."
The
old
man
chuckled.
"You
should
have
seen
the
expression
on
his
face."
"Did
she
see
how
he
would
die?"
Barrent
asked.
"Yes.
By
a
knife-thrust.
The
poor
man
stayed
in
his
house
for
the
entire
four
days."
"Was
he
killed?"
"Of
course.
His
wife
killed
him.
She
was
a
strong-minded
woman,
I'm
told."
Barrent
hoped
that
Myla
wouldn't
skren
any
future
for
him.
Life
was
difficult
enough
without
a
mutant's
predictions
to
make
it
worse.
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